Introducing J/105 Counterpoint to the SSC Fleet!

Congratulations to SSC Members Praem Phulwani and Scott Humphreys on the purchase of their new boat, J/105 Counterpoint!

A message from Praem: The first time I raced on a J/105 was J/Fest 2018, where I sailed with Steve Summers on Puff. I was hooked and raced on J/105s each season from 2019 on, skippering S/V Moonglow on Wednesdays from 2022 through 2024 with Scott, my co-owner. One of the greatest things about racing J/105 here in the Northwest is the size and strength of our local one design fleet, which means we get to have close, competitive, tactically interesting races every week during the season. I love J/105s for their versatility across the spectrum of racing and day sailing. Whether it’s inshore racing around the cans, long distance races in Puget Sound or beyond, or the Swiftsure International, J/105s are the right mix of competitive and comfortable for me.

Scott and I have discussed running our own race team for years, and also wanted to be able to set up a boat specifically for our team. Counterpoint is the culmination of that, and has a number of features that distinguish it from most of the other boats in her class (while complying with class rules, of course). Chief among these is her factory tiller, making her one of two J/105s with tillers in Puget Sound and the first in the Seattle Sailing Club. We’re looking forward to racing her in every class event we can in 2025, and doing the same in 2026 leading up to the J/105 North American championship here in Seattle next year.

For those curious about the name: Scott and I have both played classical music in the past, and we both performed professionally at one point or another in our lives. We’re both of the opinion that J.S. Bach was far ahead of his time, and still does some things better other than any other composer before or after. Musical counterpoint is when two or more independent melodies are played at the same time while being in harmony with one another. It’s a pretty stunning effect when you can pull it off. We also think that it’s a great metaphor for how a winning crew works with one another, and it’s something we aspire to.

Counterpoint will be entering the fleet sometime in May, and is the first J/105 in our fleet (and the only boat over 30 feet in our fleet) to be steered with a tiller rather than wheel!

Praem P. (left) and Scott H. (right)